A: Like every other get-rich scheme, the chances of success are very, very low, even experienced guys get burned on deals. The market can change in three months and it’s going to take the average person, three to six months to get it done. The market may be hot, but then things change and costs are way more than you expected. Flipping is speculation. You’re hoping the value goes up and you’re hoping you’ll add value by improving the property. But the likelihood is unlikely. You can spend $75,000 to $80,000 on the house. But every improvement doesn’t add more value than it costs. And I’m the biggest fan of real estate, but I’m a long-term investor. And maybe I’m just chicken and that’s OK. You can say that. I’m looking for long-term assets. We’ll know (if I’ve made a good investment) in 15 years.

Q: Do you enjoy being a real estate investor?

A: It’s not as glamorous as people think. And it’s hard work. There are very few people who own several properties. It’s a personal decision. It’s still a good time to buy because interest rates are still very low. It’s too bad rates have gone up a bit. But they were never below 6 percent until three years ago. Prices are still down. It’s still a good time to buy real estate. All the fancy properties, though, make no sense. You won’t live long enough to get positive cash flow from those properties.

Q: Sounds like common sense.

A: I’m pretty smart and savvy now about buying real estate. But I never figured this stuff out (early on). I bought some properties in 2003 and wanted to offload them in 2006. But five to six years ago, it wasn’t like you had to get cash flow on properties. Now, I teach that to investors every month. Here are the properties. I give people a spreadsheet, a model and tell them to go find the property, put down the expenses, the property insurance and mortgage. And ask, does this make financial sense? Downtown San Diego condos make no sense at all. You’ll literally wait 30 years to make positive cash flow. But in El Cajon, you’re positive from day one.

Q: Is today’s real estate environment different from the previous housing craze?

A: The conditions last time, it was pure euphoria in the marketplace. Right now, it’s a good time to buy, there are low interest rates and properties are affordable. The problem now is there are no properties available.

Q: What do you look for in a property?

A: As an investor, you want a property in better shape over worst. You want cash-flow positive. A beautiful property in La Jolla that’s been beautifully remodeled is going to be a terrible investment (because chances are the monthly mortgage will be higher than what you can rent it out for). My other concern with people flipping properties is they’re not doing a good job in construction. Ooooh, new appliances, and stainless steel, new cabinets — it’s just junk. I’m thinking it’s the lowest-grade stuff.